AMD Athlon 5350 and Gigabyte GA-AM1M-S2H Review

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Athlon 5350 and AM1 Platform Conclusion

IMPORTANT: Although the rating and final score mentioned in this conclusion are made to be as objective as possible, please be advised that every author perceives these factors differently at various points in time. While we each do our best to ensure that all aspects of the product are considered, there are often times unforeseen market conditions and manufacturer changes which occur after publication that could render our rating obsolete. Please do not base any purchase solely on our conclusion, as it represents our product rating specifically for the product tested, which may differ from future versions. Benchmark Reviews begins our conclusion with a short summary for each of the areas that we rate.

The Athlon 5350 and AM1 platform perform very well considering the market position they occupy. While the Athlon 5350 sat at the bottom of all except the gaming test, the competition wasn’t exactly fair. I used what I had on hand, but I had to compare the extremely entry level AM1 platform to the much more mainstream i3-3220 and i3-4340. The fact that the Athlon 5350 often matched and sometimes beat the performance of the i3-3220 is a testament to it’s power. For what it is, the Athlon 5350 and AM1 platform are great performers.

The Gigabye AM1M-S2H that was provided to us in order to test the AM1 platform is somewhat plain in appearance. It does sport matching green capacitors across the board, which makes it stand out a little. Flashy appearances aren’t really that necessary on the AM1 platform, however. This is not the type of motherboard that you put into a full tower case with a window and some lighting to show off. The AM1 platform is more designed to be put into a small box and hidden away in an entertainment center drawer, a closet, or maybe on or under a desk.

The AMD Athlon 5350 and the AM1 platform are specifically constructed to fit the needs of the niche market in which they find themselves. The Gigabyte AM1M-S2H sticks to the Gigabye Ultra Durable standard. The Athlong 5350 and the AM1 platform withstood our rigorous testing without any difficulty. We’ve come to expect a high level of construction quality from AMD and their manufacturing partners. The AM1 platform doesn’t disappoint.

In terms of functionality, the AM1 platform provides exactly what it needs to meet the demands of its market and not much else. The AM1 drops to a single memory channel, which is something that is very hard to find in a desktop product now. That being said, for its purpose, it doesn’t really need more than a single channel. PCIe lanes are limited, but a discrete graphics solution isn’t really a must here. The idea for the AM1 platform is to keep costs low. To that end, the functionality should provide everything you need, but nothing you don’t. I’m not sure that the AM1M-S2H motherboard needed the extra IO chip.

At the time of this writing, the AMD Athlon 5350 cost $64.99 (Newegg | Amazon), and the Gigabyte GA-AM1M-S2H was available for $34.99 (Newegg | Amazon). Add to that another $150 for the rest of the components you’ll need and you could have an entire entry-level system for around $250. That’s a pretty great price for a system that would work perfectly as media center or a home server. I think this platform would be perfect for the needs of most home computer systems. The problem is that most home users aren’t necessarily DIYers.

Pros:

+ Very Affordable

+ Good Performance

Cons:

– Single DDR3 Channel
– Niche Market

Ratings:

Performance: 8.00

Appearance: 8.00

Construction: 9.00

Functionality: 8.00

Value: 9.00

Final Score: 8.40 out of 10.

Read more at http://benchmarkreviews.com/13745/asus-a88x-pro-amd-motherboard-review/10/#z5WdijhziEI4utxx.99